Corus fined for chimney explosion

Date:

31 March 2010

Release No:

YH/141/10

Steel giant Corus was today fined £10,000 following an explosion in a 75-metre-tall steel chimney in Scunthorpe.

Four nearby contractors were lucky to escape serious injury in the incident at Dawes Lane Coke Ovens on 3 October 2007.

Corus UK Ltd, registered at 30 Millbank, London, pleaded guilty to two separate health and safety breaches at Scunthorpe Magistrates' Court for failing to remove flammable gas from the chimney before undertaking hot repairs, and for not carrying out a proper risk assessment.

Magistrates heard that the chimney, known as a flarestack, required welding to put right earlier repair work on the structure.

However, the stack wasn't adequately isolated from the live gas system when the welding took place, meaning traces of extremely flammable gas were present inside. The gas ignited during the work and almost blew the flarestack in half.

In addition to the £10,000 fine, Corus UK Ltd was also ordered to pay £6,155 in costs for breaching section 5(1) and section 6(1) of the Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations 2002.

After the hearing HSE Inspector Helen Berry commented:

"It was sheer good fortune that nobody was killed or seriously injured by the explosion. We could so easily be talking about a catastrophic incident given the size and scale of the structure.

"The fact that there were no serious injuries doesn't make this any less serious from a safety perspective. There were clear breaches relating to safe working and risk assessment, and it's disappointing that a major employer like Corus failed in this regard and endangered the lives of workers.

"I hope today's prosecution sends out a strong message to the industry of the importance of proper safety procedures, and I hope future incidents of this kind can be prevented."

Notes to editors

1. Regulation 5(1) of the Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmosphere Regulations 2002 states: "Where a dangerous substance is or is liable to be present at the workplace, the employer shall make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks to his employees which arise from that substance."
2. Regulation 6(1) of the Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmosphere Regulations 2002 states: "Every employer shall ensure that risk is either eliminated or reduced so far as is reasonably practicable."
3. Further information on health and safety can be found online at www.hse.gov.uk

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